GOLF

Evening Post, Volume CXIII, Issue 84, 9 April 1932, Page 18

GOLF

By "Chipshot" LADIES AT HERETAUNGA

MRS. STOUT CHAMPION

NOTES

During the week Heretaunga lias seen the usual influx of visiting golfera' from all parts of New Zealand for the Ladies' Provincial Golf Championship. The- course, as on previous occasions took the big entries without difficulty, and the starting arrangements were so good that there were 110 delays. There is no doubt that women's committee* excel in thorough preparation, and, until recently they showed the men hovv such events should be conducted. It was noteworthy that most of the lad* ies on both divisions played remark- " ably closely round their handicaps, with. ; few lapses. Mrs. Stout's win was well deserved. Disposing of Mrs. E. Grace (Wanganui) in the first round fairly; easily, she beat Miss E. Bell -in the . second round, and in. the third met ." Mrs." Dodgshun (Otago). This was almost interesting match. , . Many.had:expected Mrs. Dodgshun to annex the ■ championship as she is a fine stylist,: one of the best iron players, and an. - experienced golfer with many wins in. big golf to her credit. They were all ~ square at the turn, and when Mrs. f Stout was half stymied at the seventeenth, and Mrs. Dodgshun squared the game there, the interest was intense. Mrs. Stout deserved her win on the ;. eighteenth, for she played a beautiful second, and lay with an apparent 3 : within her grasp, as she had sunk similar putts with ease during the round. -' Mrs. Dodgshun's return from. an. incautious second, however, laid the be- ; giunings of an exciting finish. Her ball hit that of her opponent, and. ' though it did not knock it on appreei- ■'.' ably, it probably stopped her own ball ~ from, .running well across the green. Mrs. Stout missed her putt, and Mrs. Dodgshun was confronted with, one of those awkward stymies where the opponent's "ball is close to the hole, and the other ball too far back to give any; running margin. It was a dead stymie, ~ and it was Mrs. Dodgshun's only, chance for a half, but "the lofted ball " failed to go down. Mrs. Stout had. everjr bit as close- a match for more than half-way with Miss Watson, but .- won the fourteenth and fifteenth. It looked like a win for her on the six--teenth as well, as her two fine shots left her a putt of some three feet for, a 3, but Miss' Watson sank a twelve-... footer for a half. Mrs. Stout, inde- 1 feating three visiting golfers of parts, ~--- and retaining the cup for the Welling-:; ton Club, played very fine golf. In'r the early stages of the tournament she ■•:• did two 79 's, and was never much over 80. She is a good stylist, hitting a- V long ball from the tee with delightful > erispness, and playing a fine iron, while f: on the few occasions she got into trouble she showed plucky recoveries, - and did not allow temporary set backs -t to affect her play. Miss Watson (Mana- - watu) played well up to form, and but. : . for finding the bunker at the back, off.j the fourteenth green, and misjudging .; the strength of her mashie shot at the-' ticklish short hole up the bank, where - she again ran into trouble, would have "'" taken Mrs. Stout further. . • ' .'

Mrs. Collins (Wairarapa) beat two .^ very good golfers in Mrs. Slater (Hutt)j ~ and Miss Eiehardson ("Wellington), and' v i held Miss Watson down well in the semi-final. Mrs. Collins is a strong - - hitter, and a first-rate player geneT---.-; ally, but lias not had enough golf to" play herself into form recently. Mis 3 Richardson is a .very promising young; -"; player, -with a particularly attractive, ~ free style on the tee, and should be one o£ ~' the "Wellington Club's best golfers in,,., a year or two. Her long game is ex- '..... cellent, and she was a trifle unlucky in. -_ stymies, or might have gone further.Miss M. "Ward, the popular and efficient; secretary of the- Wellington Club, and. the holder of the cup, went ont to Mrs.; Dodgshuu in the first rounds The ' Otago player was in good form, doing1 an 80, and Miss Ward was only 1 down, ? at the fifteenth. Mrs. Wilson., did not: play at all up to her old form, especially mth her irons, and went out at the twentieth (where she -went out to -': Mrs. Slater last .year) to Mrs. Weltoa ; Hogg, a recent acquisition to Welling* n ton golf, a fine stylist with an ideal match temperament. Easter Tourneys. .1 The Shandon tournament at Easter provided an opportunity for the great ~ •majority of golfers whose handicaps ; barred them, from participating, in the provincial championship. There were . 70 entries, and visitors were present : from Sydney, Auckland, Dunedin, and. Hawera, as well as from local clubs. - At Nelson Langbein (Titahi), whose- - ; game has improved considerably, lately, reached the final, and went down-4 and : 3 to a good Nelson player in Huggins. r A Keen Semi-Final. . ■ ■■-■ In the Taranakl amateur champion- ' ship at Easter A. E. Conway, after de-... f eating N. P. Green in the semi-finals, 7 went down to Keeling (Palinerstou -■ North) in the final. Conway V match ■- with Green was something of a classic, 7 as it went to the twenty-fifth. Green, " was 1 up at the fifteenth, but Conway squared the game at the next hole, and - became dormy 1 at the seventeenth. Green squared the game with a sevenfoot putt at the eighteenth. The next . was halved, and Green, missed a putt for a win at the twentieth. Green visited another bunker at the twentyfirst, but Conway, straight as a die, : was well and truly on. A chip and an, eight-foot putt saw Green get his 4.. At the next Conway sent yet another' fine second to the green. His opponent was on the front edge, but a great long putt finished beside the hole and each was down.in 4. It looked over at the twenty-third, where Conway was . safely on in 2 and.Green just outside.; Bis third finished nine or ten feet - away, but down it went, and still the - match went on. At the next Green, was still struggling for his half. Conway put a high niashie shot at the back of "the green and his opponent was in, the long grass on. the slope of a bunker mound to the right. His ne.xt wa3 . eight feet above the hole, but the diffi-" cult putt went in. It seemed that Conway, who was there waiting all the '.. time, could not administer the death, blow, but the end had to come. Both drove well at the twenty-fifth and Con- -._- ---way dropped a splendid second over tha Bunker and on to the green. Green was just short with his second, with a difficult approach from the low^ground on the left. For'once his chip was a long way. short and he could not sink _ the next. Conway's long.putt stopped on the edge of the hole and he had won. j a really memorable game. From, tha, eighteenth his card was 4544434. British v. U.S. 'Women. The Ladies' Golf Union has de--cided to play the international match'" for the Curtis Cup between Great Britain and the."United States.in May^ on the Wentworth Club's course. It. will be recalled that tentative arranger: ments had been made to play thg." match at Royal Mid-Surrey, the. club ; having received permission from the - Crown authorities to " charge gatemoney. However, as the result ofsubsequent negotiations with other" clubs, a more attractive offer has bee» received from Wentworth, and. it hai". been accepted. '